Temporary lighting is often desirable for outdoor events. Lights placed strategically throughout the lawn, patio, and sidewalk areas provide both an ambience as well as a level of safety. Tiki lamps provide a unique style of temporary lighting in that the lamps can be used for ambience, safety, and to help keep flying insects away. The lamps consist of a wick that, when lit, draws fuel from a replenishable cannister. The cannister is typically secured to a post capable of holding the lamp at a height that allows for safe operation.
A problem with post mounted lamps is that the post must be secured to the ground or a fixed object for safe operation. If the post is not firmly secured, the lamp could fall. This would expose both the fuel and a lit wick to surrounding objects and surfaces. The most common way of securing a post is jamming the post into the ground. Unfortunately, ground mounting a post in the ground is not practical in all situations.
Inserting the post in the ground could be difficult due to certain characteristics associated with soiled surfaces. These characteristics include, but are not limited to, dense soil caused by dryness or the presence of clays, extremely loose soils caused by sands or organic content, the presence of aggregates such as rocks or stones, the existence of tree roots, debris buried beneath the surface, pipes associated with plumbing and sprinkler systems as well as in ground utility lines. Additionally, it is impractical to insert post mounted lamps in docks, patios, and pool decks or other similar surfaces.
To accommodate difficult post mounting conditions, various types of portable bases may be employed. For example, a metal frame such as that used for a Christmas tree stand can be employed to hold such posts. However, such stands are not generally suited for exterior use and are not aesthetically pleasing due to their size. Additionally, these type stands are not capable of withstanding wind gusts that could easily topple a top heavy post mounted lamp. Alternatively, a concrete form may be used wherein the weight of the form prevents movement of the post. Should an attempt be made to move or transport the weighted form, the weight of such concrete forms provides for an unwieldy structure. In either event, storage of multiple stands/forms can be impractical due to the amount of space consumed and the difficulty of storing heavy objects. For instance, the stacking or multiple concrete forms on top of one another could be a dangerous proposition should the stands topple.
Thus, the prior art does not address the need for a stackable, portable stand that can be placed on any surface, the need for stability in wind gusts, and the necessity of storage in a relatively small area.